Djeci je zanimljivo kad netko donese nove igračke na sastanak u učionicu.

It is interesting for the children when someone brings new toys to the meeting in the classroom.

Breakdown of Djeci je zanimljivo kad netko donese nove igračke na sastanak u učionicu.

• biti: to be
• u: in
• nov: new
• kad: when
• dijete: child
• učionica: classroom
• na: to
• sastanak: meeting
• donijeti: to bring
• netko: someone
• zanimljiv: interesting
• igračka: toy

Questions & Answers about Djeci je zanimljivo kad netko donese nove igračke na sastanak u učionicu.

Why is Djeci used instead of Djeca?

Djeca is nominative plural (“children”) and would be used as the grammatical subject.

Here we have Djeci, which is dative plural (“to the children”). Croatian often uses the dative to mark the experiencer of a feeling or state:

• Djeci je zanimljivo. – It is interesting to the children.
• Djeci je dosadno. – The children are bored (literally: It is boring to the children).
• Meni je hladno. – I am cold (literally: It is cold to me).

So Djeci answers “to whom is it interesting?” and that’s why it is in the dative case, not nominative.

Why is it je zanimljivo and not su zanimljivi?

Je zanimljivo is an impersonal construction with a neuter adjective:

• je – 3rd person singular of biti (to be).
• zanimljivo – neuter singular form of the adjective zanimljiv (interesting).

The “real” subject here is the whole situation expressed by the clause kad netko donese nove igračke na sastanak u učionicu. You can think of an underlying structure like:

• To je djeci zanimljivo kad...
  (That is interesting to the children when...)

Because to is neuter singular, the adjective appears as zanimljivo, neuter singular.

If you said Djeca su zanimljivi, that would mean The children are interesting (people), not The children find it interesting.

Does Djeci je zanimljivo mean “The children are interesting” or “The children are interested”?

It means “The children find it interesting / It is interesting to the children”, so closer to “the children are interested” in English.

Important contrasts:

• Djeca su zanimljiva. – The children are interesting (they are the ones who cause interest in others).
• Djeci je zanimljivo. – The children find it interesting (something else is interesting to them).
• Djeca su zainteresirana (za igračke). – The children are interested (in the toys). – uses zainteresiran for interested.

So zanimljiv describes something that is interesting; the construction X-u je zanimljivo expresses that X experiences something as interesting.

What is the difference between kad and kada here?

In this sentence, kad and kada mean the same thing: “when”.

• kad netko donese...
• kada netko donese...

Both are correct. Kada is the full form and can sound a bit more formal or careful, while kad is the shortened, very common everyday form. Native speakers switch between them mostly for rhythm and style, not for meaning.

Why is the verb donese used, and not donosi?

Donese is the present tense of a perfective verb (donijeti – to bring (once, as a whole act)).
Donosi is the present of an imperfective verb (donositi – to be bringing / to bring repeatedly).

In Kad netko donese nove igračke..., a perfective present is natural in a “when-clause” describing:

• each completed event: whenever someone brings (successfully brings) new toys…

You could hear kad netko donosi nove igračke, but it would focus more on the ongoing or repeated activity (“while someone is bringing toys”), and it sounds less idiomatic in this particular sentence. The perfective donese nicely expresses each individual occurrence that triggers the children’s reaction.

What case are nove igračke in, and why?

Nove igračke is accusative plural feminine.

• Base form: nova igračka – nominative singular (a new toy).
• Accusative plural: nove igračke – (new toys as a direct object).

They are in the accusative because they are the direct object of donese:

• netko donese (što?) nove igračke – someone brings (what?) new toys.

The adjective nove agrees with igračke in gender (feminine), number (plural), and case (accusative).

Why is it na sastanak and not na sastanku?

The preposition na uses different cases depending on meaning:

• na
  • accusative → movement to / onto something
    
    • na sastanak – to the meeting (destination)
• na
  • locative → location on / at something
    
    • na sastanku – at the meeting (place where something is happening)

In donese nove igračke na sastanak, there is movement towards the meeting (you bring the toys to the meeting), so the accusative na sastanak is required, not na sastanku.

Why do we say both na sastanak and u učionicu? Aren’t they both destinations?

They are both related to destination, but they express slightly different things:

• na sastanak – to the meeting (to the event / occasion).
• u učionicu – into the classroom (physical space you enter).

Combined, na sastanak u učionicu can be understood as:

• to the meeting (that is) in/into the classroom, or
• to the meeting, into the classroom (two linked destinations: the event and the room where it takes place).

If you wanted to emphasise only the place of the meeting (without the sense of movement into it), you could use locative:

• na sastanak u učionici – to the meeting in the classroom (describing where the meeting is held).

With u učionicu (accusative), the sentence highlights motion into the classroom as part of bringing the toys.

Can the word order of the whole sentence be changed?

Yes. Croatian word order is flexible, and you can move parts for emphasis while keeping the same basic meaning. For example:

• Djeci je zanimljivo kad netko donese nove igračke na sastanak u učionicu.
  (focus first on the children’s feeling)

• Kad netko donese nove igračke na sastanak u učionicu, djeci je zanimljivo.
  (focus first on the condition “when someone brings…”)

What you cannot freely move is the clitic je, which tends to appear very early in the clause (typically in second position):

• Djeci je jako zanimljivo... – correct
• Djeci jako zanimljivo je... – sounds wrong/unnatural.

What does netko exactly mean, and is neko also correct?

Netko means “someone / somebody”.

• netko donese nove igračke – someone brings new toys.

In standard Croatian, netko is the correct form. Neko is common in some dialects and is standard in Serbian and Bosnian, but in standard Croatian you should use netko (and similarly: nešto, negdje, nekad etc.).

So for Croatian as taught in Croatia, stick to netko in writing and formal speech.